Deutsche Bank AG Increases Stock Holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 26.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 86,239 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 18,113 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned approximately 0.07% of Natera worth $13,652,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Natera by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,316,470 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,949,697,000 after purchasing an additional 879,463 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 134.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,742,428 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,067,327,000 after acquiring an additional 3,871,862 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,701,425 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,060,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,036,396 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Natera by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,240,041 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $512,898,000 after acquiring an additional 439,778 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,232,681 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $355,809,000 after buying an additional 142,201 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA stock traded down $0.54 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $153.99. The stock had a trading volume of 191,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,380,634. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $92.14 and a 1-year high of $183.00. The firm has a market cap of $21.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.59 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business's fifty day moving average is $149.13 and its 200-day moving average is $157.15.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.59) by $0.09. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The firm had revenue of $501.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $446.68 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.56) earnings per share. Natera's revenue for the quarter was up 36.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NTRA. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com lowered Natera from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $182.12.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other news, insider John Fesko sold 343 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.55, for a total transaction of $49,923.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,843,490.30. The trade was a 0.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,562 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.41, for a total value of $354,606.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,457,844.37. This represents a 3.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 152,436 shares of company stock worth $22,019,079. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

About Natera

Natera, Inc, a diagnostics company, develops and commercializes molecular testing services worldwide. Its products include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for chromosomal abnormalities of a fetus, as well as in twin pregnancies; Horizon carrier screening test for individuals and couples determine if they are carriers of genetic variations that cause certain genetic conditions; Vistara single-gene NIPT screens for 25 single-gene disorders that cause severe skeletal, cardiac, and neurological conditions; Spectrum, preimplantation genetic tests for couples undergoing IVF; Anora that analyzes miscarriage tissue from women; Empower, a hereditary cancer screening test; and non-invasive prenatal paternity product, which allows a couple to establish paternity without waiting for the child to be born.